Top trade envoys from China and the European Union agreed on a broad initial deal on Friday after two days of talks aimed at calming rising tensions over trade imbalances, the EU’s trade commissioner said on Friday.
Neither party offered clear details about the preliminary agreement, but European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic indicated that the pact includes the reduction of tariffs for some products that Europa sends to China, as well as measures to stabilize rare earth supply chains.
The EU trade envoy noted that the deal could cut imports into the EU of Chinese electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids by up to 50% and could reduce tariffs on products that benefit “almost all” EU countries. The agreement would require the approval of the leaders of the entire bloc, made up of 27 countries.
Both sides were seeking to resolve key factors behind China’s growing trade surplus, which reached 360 billion euros ($410 billion) last year.
China has pushed for the EU to stop blocking its imports of advanced computer chip-making machines, restrictions imposed on national security grounds at the behest of Washington.
Earlier, Sefcovic noted that this week’s talks were the culmination of three months of intensive work. He had set October as the deadline to achieve significant results in the trade rebalancing.
Earlier in the week, China’s Ministry of Commerce issued a statement urging the EU to avoid protectionist measures and warned that such steps could backfire.
Trade tensions have grown in recent months, with each party imposing or considering restrictions on the other’s imports.
The EU has taken steps to limit imports of electric vehicles and batteries for them made in China and approved measures to protect the European steel industry. It also imposed limitations on tariff-free imports of small e-commerce packages, essentially targeting Chinese fast fashion companies.
Last week, China launched an anti-dumping investigation into EU imports of p-nitrotoluene, a chemical compound used in dyes and pharmaceuticals.
Chinese authorities and companies have expressed concern over reports that some EU members are pushing for new measures to protect local industries.
Concern about the increase in Chinese exports to Europe and other parts of the world, in what some describe as a “China shock 2.0”, has intensified as USAespecially since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, has raised tariffs and taken other measures to try to reduce its own huge trade deficit with Beijing.
Despite adverse reaction from some of its trading partners, China’s global trade surplus reached $1.2 trillion in 2025 and is expected to exceed $1 trillion again this year.
The EU’s trade deficit with China widened to 103.34 billion euros (about $116 billion) in the April-July quarter, as imports rose to 153.63 billion euros ($172.3 billion), while European exports to China rose to 50.3 billion euros ($56.4 billion), according to EU statistics.
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McNeil reported from Brussels and Kurtenbach reported from Mito, Japan. AP journalists Borg Wong in Beijing and Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
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This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative artificial intelligence tool.
Source: www.independentespanol.com
